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King Kamehameha Day: Celebrating the Legacy of Hawaii's First Monarch · Hawaii Travel Podcast by Hawaii’s Best: Plan a Better Hawaii Vacation

• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Aloha.
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Welcome to Hawaii's Best.
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Here you'll learn what to know before traveling, as we discover Hawaiian culture, local businesses and the experiences that make Hawaii one of the most incredible places in the world.
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: And now your host, brian Murphy.
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: Today is King Kamehameha Day and thought of be fitting to do a quick episode.
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: Hawaii is one of the most incredible places cultures it's rich in history.
• 0:34
  Speaker 2: The history and culture of these Polynesian islands are often highlighted through public holidays that celebrate the phenomenal traditions of Hawaii, and one of those holidays is celebrated annually on June 11th, which honors the first monarch who established the Kingdom of Hawaii, kamehameha the Great, and this holiday is celebrated across all the islands, with the main celebrations happening on the island of Oahu.
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: One of the first questions you may be asking yourself is what is King Kamehameha Day?
• 1:09
  Speaker 2: And after uniting the islands, kamehameha the Great became the first king of Hawaii, and this day is a celebration and memorial of King Kamehameha.
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: King Kamehameha Day is a beautiful celebration of not only Kamehameha the Great, but also the protection and preservation of the Hawaiian culture.
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: Celebrated in a festival style, king Kamehameha Day is enjoyed by thousands of Hawaiian locals and tourists on June 11th every year.
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: The celebration features traditional Hawaiian song dance, along with delicious food, of course, arts and crafts.
• 1:51
  Speaker 2: So the history of King Kamehameha Day is that, after years of strife and conflict across what is now known as the Hawaiian Islands, kamehameha united the islands into one kingdom in 1810.
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: He became the first king of Hawaii and was also known as a wise diplomat, fierce warrior, and was highly respected as a leader.
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: Sixty-one years later, king Kamehameha the Fifth, his great grandson, declared by royal decree that June 11th would be King Kamehameha Day in honor of his memory.
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: The day was also implemented as a replacement for Hawaiian Sovereignty Restoration Day that took place on July 31st, a holiday which King Kamehameha the Fifth disapproved of due to the association with the Paulette Affair, and if you want to read more on that, i would just encourage you to search Paulette Affair and you can get what that is.
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: Maybe we'll cover it on a future episode, but I digress.
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: Okay, the first celebration took place on June 11th 11th, 1872, and early festivities were celebrated through grand carnival.
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: I can just imagine what those first few celebrations must have been like.
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: However, during the years of 1893 and 1898, celebrations fell to the wayside after the overthrow of Hawaii, but the day continued to be recognized and was reestablished when Hawaii became a United States territory in 1898.
• 3:28
  Speaker 2: The celebration has been an annual event ever since and was one of the first public holidays proclaimed on Hawaii State Register when the islands entered statehood in 1959.
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: And that's a whole complicated, other topic.
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: But going back to King Kamehameha Day, how it's celebrated across the islands, i've kind of already mentioned it, but each Hawaiian island has different traditions to celebrate King Kamehameha Day.
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: However, they are celebrated with festivals and parades across all the islands.
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: There are five King Kamehameha statues that currently exist across the Hawaiian islands that play an important role in festivities on King Kamehameha Day.
• 4:11
  Speaker 2: The largest celebration, like I mentioned, however, takes place on Oahu and the largest number of attendees across the islands, and Oahu is also home to the original 15 foot statue of King Kamehameha in Honolulu, one of those most iconic images that you've probably seen will be sure we're going to put a picture of the statue on our Instagram account.
• 4:35
  Speaker 2: You can find us on Instagram at hawaiibest.
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: The celebration begins with a symbolic lay draping ceremony in downtown Honolulu and every year, dozens of volunteers sew flowers to create a fresh lay that is then lifted by crane at the event to be dropped over the outstretched arm of the Honolulu's King Kamehameha statue.
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: As part of the day long event, honolulu also celebrates with the annual King Kamehameha celebration floral parade, a stunning parade that honors old Hawaiian pageantry through magnificent colors, flowers and people.
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: So I hope that gives you an idea of a brief overview of what King Kamehameha Day is all about, and be sure to follow along today and maybe do some of your own research a little bit more in depth about King Kamehameha.
• 5:28
  Speaker 2: And until next time, be well Aloha.
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: Mahalo for listening to this episode of Hawaii's Best.
• 5:38
  Speaker 1: To stay up to date on future episodes, please subscribe and visit us at hawaiibesttravelcom.